Fluke
by Ginny Ha-ha
Summary: Fluke Astley is a hopeless Hufflepuff 4th year. Her best friend has turned on her, it's custard with THINGS living in it for dinner again, and for some reson, Tom Riddle is determind to become friends with her... but is this all as innocent as Fluke think
1. "Nothing Speacial"

... The Fatal Bellman Which Gives Stern'st Goodnight 

Fluke

By Ginny :)

I wrote this for no reason on earth, really. I was just looking through my saved work, and found this mouldering away, and decided to continue it. 

I'll have you know that this won't be propperly romancy [I'm sure once you meet the main charactor, within 1/2 a page, it will be pretty obvious why...], partly because I don't want it to be [heck, that would ruin tha 'plot', such as it is], I can't write romance to save my life. Not in a million years. I just don't see the world that way... as will be clear to anyone who knows exactly how I got my 1st b/f [long story, and, I imagine, painful. Well, it was for him. It involves bycicles, and my inability to steer in straight lines ^_^] ANYWAY, I don't expect you care, and I'm rambling. 

I own everyone in this, except Tom Riddle, pretty much. I think so. If I'm wrong, just pretend I mentioned the person in question, too... :) 

READ & REVIEW!!!!!!!! 

Ginny :) 

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"Fluke!"  
"What?" Fluke Astley was a pale 4th year at Hogwarts. She was small, but still managed to look gangling. She wore a permanently neurotic expression, and tended to be rather silent, although some people put this down to swank, rather then shyness.   
"Having fun drawing again? Hark at the next Picasso!" Fluke's best- friend- sometimes, Pitty Edwidge commented, an ill- disguised sneer to her tone, tossing her hair back over her slim shoulder.  
  
Pitty had used to be Fluke's best friend, but that was last year, before she decided that she was above such things. And, with her curtain of shimmering black hair, large dark eyes and pale skin, she undoubtedly prettier then Fluke and her own untidy brown tangle and equally dull brown eyes. Fluke had watched her only friend turn on her with a kind of mild despondency. It was only what she had always expected.  
"Go away, Pitty," Fluke leant back down to her task of drawing an elaborate unicorn, aware of the sniggers from nearby students. She knew they all thought that she was a loner and a loser, a dull Hufflepuff nobody, always hunched over a sketch book, her forever ink stained fingers working on some new picture. No one ever saw what she drew. Fluke refused to show anyone, including Pitty. Especially Pitty.  
Maybe if they saw what she was drawing, they'd stop their crowing, but Fluke doubted it. It wasn't as if they cared anyway.  
"Stop being such a little Nora NoMates, Fluke Astley!"   
Fluke chewed the end of her quill, and regretted it as she got a mouthful of feather, "Go away, Pitty."  
"Fine. No skin off my nose," Pitty shrugged, and wandered off to join the   
rowdy group of cooler students then her friend. They moved on, leaving Fluke to herself. The library, where she worked so attentively, now otherwise empty.  
Fluke was beyond caring. Carefully, she began to add in more detail, trying to make the delicate creature she was committing to paper become more lifelike, so that it seemed to shine with real intelligence, real beauty...  
"Gosh, that's so good!"  
Fluke snapped her notebook shut quickly, blushing.  
  
She blushed even deeper, when she saw whom it was that had made the compliment. Tom Riddle. Tom Riddle, tall and good-looking, striking with his pronounced turquoise eyes and charismatic mop of untidy hair. Fluke had never really talked to him, just seen him sitting at the Slytherin table with his fellow 5th years.   
"It's nothing. Just a sketch..." she mumbled, embarrassed.   
"It's really great, especially for 'just a sketch'. Let me see," he held out a hand expectantly, but Fluke clutched her sketchbook to her, acutely aware of her now very pink cheeks.   
"Thanks, but..."  
"Aw, come on, Fluke," -how did he know her name? - "I've already seen one drawing. What harm could a few more do? I'm not going to laugh."  
He had a point. Fluke loosened her grip on the book, still unwilling. No one had ever seen her drawings. They were... well, personal.   
He kept his open palm out in front of her, waiting. Reluctantly, she handed it over. She didn't know why she did. Maybe she trusted him, despite the fact he was a Slytherin.  
"Crikey," he let out a low whistle; "You've got a talent for this."  
"I, er... thanks. No one else seems to think so."  
"Well, they're obviously blind, then. Where are your friends?"   
"They... had to go." She wasn't about to admit to this boy that her 'friends' were currently off sniggering about her in the Hufflepuff common room.  
"Ah," he nodded "never mind. People can be so fickle, you know?" 

Fluke nodded. She knew.  
Tom Riddle sat himself down next to her. Fluke's insides seemed to do a little jump. Did he really want to talk to a little nobody like her, when he could so easily find one of the pretty, popular girls?  
Apparently so.  
"What year are you in, Fluke?"  
"4th year. The one below your'n."  
"You look younger," he said, smiling slightly. Fluke shrugged. She had always looked young for her age.  
"Wish I looked older."  
"Why? I think it's sweet, like," he said, his sea green eyes sparkling. Fluke went roughly the same colour as a tomato.   
"Th- thanks."  
"Don't you normally hang around with that girl with all the long black hair?"  
Fluke nodded, a little reluctantly. This would be what he wanted; to get to know pretty Pitty Edwidge through her, plain Fluke Astley. It wouldn't be the first time. She waited for him to comment on how nice Pitty looked, but he didn't.  
"She has too many teeth. It makes her look like a vampire!" he said instead, making Fluke giggle stupidly, "and she's not much of a friend, if she leaves you like this."  
"I'm not like her. She doesn't like me any more." Fluke didn't mean to say it, but the words just came. Maybe it was the sympathetic look on Tom Riddle's face "she's so much prettier then I am, so much more popular... I wish I were more like her and less like me, and... oh..." she stopped, realising how pathetic she must sound.  
"No, you're fantastic," he informed her sincerely, "You're pretty, you're cool, you're nice, and, you're much better at drawing then she ever could be. So, an added bonus!" He laughed lightly. Fluke didn't know what to say to this.  
The bell rang.  
"'And, lo the fatal bellman ring stearns't goodnight'," he said, getting to his feet, rolling his eyes.  
  
"Pardon?"  
  
"You don't know Shakespeare?"  
  
"Um. Not much," she admitted shyly.  
  
"It's just a quote from 'Macbeth'. Ignore it."  
  
"Oh...."  
  
"Do you come here every day?"  
  
"Uh- huh, usually."  
  
"I'll have to come and chat more often," he gave her a bewitching smile. Fluke felt her insides turn to butterflies, and tried to think of what to say to this. Nothing came to mind.   
  
"Well, be seeing you, Fluke."  
"Goodbye."  
And he was gone.  
  
Gosh.  
  
Dear Diary, 20th September, 1948  
  
I have decided to keep a record of my life from this day, a week into the new school year, because, as my Divination teacher, Professor Delphi, the crazy old biddy, said, "innneresting toimes ahead for ye, young Fluke, arr, indeed! Innneresting toimes!" then she laughed so hard her false eyeball fell out into Pitty Edwidge's cup of tea that she was supposed to be drinking. 

Pitty is supposed to be my best friend. Her real name is Portia, but no one calls her that. She's very pretty, with Mediterranean looks and a slim figure, not stick- like, like me, but she has only half as many brains. I know I'm not clever, so I'm hardly the one to talk, but she is worse. Maybe it's just laziness.  
On the plus side, Tom Riddle, the best looking boy in school likes me, not her! Yes, me! Boring little Fluke Astley! Hah! That's one in the eye for Pitty!  
I wonder if he just felt sorry for me? I do so hope not. He seems so nice, sweet, and charming. He liked my drawings, too. 

The only thing I'm any actual good at is art, and of course, we don't learn that here at Hogwarts, though I do try and keep it up, sketching when I can.  
  
That's the thing about being a Hufflepuff ; you're nothing special. Ravenclaws have all the brains. Slytherins are cunning. They say there is a very thin line between bravery and stupidity, although most Gryffindors rather tend to stand on that line. Us Hufflepuffs? Loyal. That's about it. And hard working is nothing if you're not clever, scheming or brave. Seems to me, us lot drew the short straw.Still, you never know, Prof. Delphi may have been right... 'interesting toimes ahead!' and all.  
  
Nothing more to say for today.  
  
~Fluke~  


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Please review! And tell me if you find Fluke annoying, please! If I don't post for ages, it's because I've sucessfully got myself grounded. Woopdidoo. 

Ting tang diddle eye poe! 

~ Ginny :) 

  


  



	2. "Maybe I AM Touched"

Fluke; Chapter 2

By Ginny :)

JKRowling owns Tom Ridde, and anyone else I forgot that has featured in her books. I own pretty much everyone else. Although Snoop is losely taken from Kaye Umanski's wonderful charactor, Dead- Eye Dudley. 

Someone seemed to think that 'Fluke' is another name for some kind of parasite [sorry, your name escapes me], and... it isn't. Well, not that I know of, although it does have interesting possibilities :)... the word 'Fluke' actually means 'accident' or 'co- incidence', so now you know. I thought it fitted *shrugs*. I'm one of those people with no lives, who have meanings behind most of their charactor names [Portia, Pitty's real name, means 'Pig- like', and there's a charactor in this called Eulalia, which means 'talkative', and so on.] 

And my thanks to everyone who replied to my post '... so long :(' on the message board. As you can see, I've decided to stay! :) Mucho appriciated, glad you cared ^_^. [For all those who didn't read it, I threatened to leave, for various resons, but anyway, I'm staying] 

Thanks to hermione potter, my poor, abused beta- reader for betaing this. Ting tang diddle eye poe, hermione! [Don't worry if I've lost you, readers, private joke...] 

Read & review! 

Ginny :) 

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Every day for some time after that, Fluke took to hanging around in the library, in the hopes that Tom Riddle would appear. And, each day, when he failed to, she tried not to feel too disappointed. She had hoped that she would see him again, other than from a distance, but, it seemed to her, this was not the case.  


Fluke was mildly bored. She was in the dormitory, lessons having finished, half-listening to a fellow Hufflepuff, Eulalia Fletchety, a very talkative girl with fluffy light brown hair, large front teeth, a round face, and eyes the colour of unwashed denim, talking about something or other. Fluke was not exactly friends with Eulalia; she was too quiet, Eulalia too talkative, and they didn't know each other well enough, but they got along. Fluke was doodling in her sketch book, Eulalia's cat, Snoop, asleep next to her.   


Snoop was an indisputable Nero amoungst cats. He had a pug- like face, most of his right ear missing, and claws like steak knives. He would chase anything, up to and including fully grown hippogriffs. His fur grew in patches, and one of his eyes was scarred so that he could no longer see out of it. He growled in his sleep, dreaming of goodness knows what. It probably involved blood, though.  


Fluke winced as Snoop flexed his claws in his sleep, sinking them in to the bone.  


"He's just a little sweetums, really," Eulalia informed her, "Lycius can't stand him, but that's just because he simply isn't a cat person," Lycius was Eulalia's brother, "He likes his dull little owl, you know Ragamuffin, well, that's Lycius's. He really is terribly dull- Ragamuffin, not Lycuis- and I think--"  


Fluke quickly snapped her sketch book shut, as the click of the door informed her of someone entering the room. It was Pitty.   


"Hello," Pitty smiled around "Did you have a good day?"  


Fluke sighed. Pitty was obviously in one of her 'I'm going to be your best friend because no one else is around worth talking to' moods.  


"Hello, Pitty," Eulalia greeted her "Fine, thanks. Did you know, Josiah Loxley said--"  


"Did he really?" Pitty cut across Eulalia, "Fluke, will you come down to the Quidditch field with me?"  


Oh, so that's what she was after. Of course, it wouldn't look right for a student as popular as Pitty to be walking across to the pitch on her own, now, would it?  


"Well, I dunno..." began Fluke.  


"Oh, please? It won't be the same without you!"  


"Are Freya and Adeliza coming?" Freya and Adeliza were the last 2 Huffelpuff girls, and Pitty's obnoxious friends. Fluke loathed them.  


"No, actually. They're meeting their boyfriends, and Tarrot was busy, and I didn't want to go along and play guzb'ry." Tarrot Jaded was Pitty's boyfriend, a 'Gryffindor oik', as Eulalia would have put it. Fluke didn't actually mind him, all things considered.  


"Oh," Fluke wondered vaguely why Pitty was in Hufflepuff. She wasn't what you'd call loyal. But, Hufflepuffs are also hard- working. Pitty was not clever, and had to labour away to get decent results. So maybe that was it. She hadn't the brains to be a Ravenclaw, or the schemingness necessary to be in Slytherin, or the bravery to be in Gryffindor. So, Hufflepuff it was. In a way, they were all in the same boat. It just depended on what kind of boat you thought you were in. Fluke was pretty sure that she had a little tug- boat, steaming along, but never really getting anywhere...   


"Are you coming or _not_?! Pitty's voice interrupted her thoughts, an edge toit now.  


Fluke decided that she might as well, "Yes, all right. Shall we take our brooms?"  


"That's the point of going down there, you mug! To practice flying."  


"Oh-- right. See you, Eulalia." 

Eulalia was now busily ignoring them. She disliked Pitty, and rarely even spoke when she was around. Still, she bid Fluke a polite farewell. 

~*~  


"It's cold and dark," Fluke moaned, "I didn't realise 'twere this dark. Let's go back, Pitty." 

"Don't be silly," Pitty, Fluke noticed, had her eyes fixed on a group of flyers, some Slytherin boys, "let's go and practice."  


Fluke was very aware that Pitty had only come down because she knew the boys would be there, and wanted to show off. Pitty was a pretty good flier, and played as a chaser for the Hufflepuff team. Fluke, however, was hopeless. Still, she didn't really care; Slytherins would laugh at her whether or not she was flying, and she might as well get a little practice in.  


Pitty had swooped over to the court, and was busy doing loop-the-loops, her dark hair fanning out behind her. The boys were watching her now.  


"Come on, Fluke!" Pitty shouted, just to show the boys that she wasn't alone, "You can try out for the team sometime soon with a little practice!"  


Fluke shrugged, and mounted her broom. The likelihood of her ever trying out for the team was extremely minimal, and the occurrence of actually getting onto it was even less likely. Still. She got the broom to hover, and slowly, carefully, flew over to join Pitty.   


"Bet you can't catch meeeeee!" Shrieked Pitty, and sped off. Fluke stared after her for a moment but following a jeer from the Slytherins, shot off after Pitty, cursing all the way.   


Fluke was not a good flier, and Pitty was very advanced. She knew what she was doing, Fluke did not. Fluke tried her best to follow Pitty, aware that she'd look even more like an idiot if she didn't play along, but suddenly, Pitty did a sharp turn in the air, and shot off, skimming through the crowd of Slytherin boys, dodging through them. Resigned to fate, Fluke took a deep breath... and followed.  


Thump.  


She'd hit one of the boys. They fell to the ground, and hit it together with a thud.  


"Ow..." she sat up, nursing her elbow. Pitty had landed neatly nearby, and was smirking delightedly.  


"Sorry..." Fluke apologised to her hapless victim, "I really didn't mean to..." she avoided the Slytherin's gaze, not looking at him, as she picked herself up from the ground and began dusting her robes off, worried that he'd find some revenge, "I say, are you all right?" 

He sat up, clutching his head, frowning in pain. Fluke looked who it was for the first time. Tom Riddle. She'd almost killed Tom Riddle! A deep blush spread over her usually pale face.  


"Yes... I think so... ow... just a bit dizzy..." he rubbed his forehead, frowning, "Sorry, I should have gotten out of the way..."  


"Riddle," interrupted Pitty, throwing Fluke a mock dirty look, "do you think you ought to go to the hospital wing?" 

"Well, I-"  


"I'll take you," she smiled at him sweetly, "I don't mind. My friend's a bit of an idiot, you see. Just needs a little practice!" she gave a silly giggle.  


Fluke sighed. Typical. Pitty had a boyfriend- Tarrot- but that wasn't going to stop her flirting, not for blood nor money.  


"Bloody Hufflepuffs," said one Slytherin-- who had apparently been created by a god who had at first wanted a brick wall, but had changed his mind halfway through-- as he glared at Fluke, and pointed his wand, "Let's see what you'd look like if I just rearranged your face a little-" the other Slytherins grinned maliciously.  


"Leave her, Kendre," said Tom, and the boy- Kendre- fell back, muttering.  


"Don't think you've got away with this, girly."  


Fluke gave a nervous squeak. Now she had Slytherins on her trail. This didn't look good.  


"Are you coming to the hospital wing too, Fluke?" Asked Tom Riddle, still clutching his forehead, where an impressive bruise was growing, "Argh, this panes!" 

"I... don't think so," she admitted, she'd be most unwelcome if Pitty went along too.  


"All right. See you."  


"See you later, Fluke," Pitty gave her a smug smile. Fluke stared stonily back at her. Pitty knew how she felt about Tom-- she wasn't exactly covert, even if she'd never actually admitted it to anyone except herself. Fluke resigned herself to fate. She slouched back off to the Hufflepuff common- room, feeling depressed. 

It might have been an hour later, when Pitty accosted her. It seemed that the nurse, Madam Lucas, expected Fluke to go and apologise to Tom Riddle, who had concussion.  


Fluke had half- expected Pitty to demand to come with her to the hospital, but it seemed she had other things on her mind. No doubt a meeting had been planned with her friends or maybe Tarrot. And they were, of course, one hundred times more important then boring Fluke Astley and an injured Tom Riddle.  
  
~*~  
  
Fluke entered the hospital wing, nervous. She didn't exactly want to be there, but she supposed that she might as well. She'd nothing better to do, when all was done and dusted.  
"Oh, you're here to see Riddle?" The school nurse, Madam Lucas, demanded.  


"Yes."  


"Well, go right in. You've done him quite an injury there, girl." She tutted disapprovingly.  


"Er, sorry."  


"Tell him that, not me. Chop chop!"  


Fluke entered the cubicle nervously, pretty sure that she would make a fool of herself yet again. Not that it was anything she wasn't used to, but sometimes, she reflected, it'd be nice for something to go right in her life. Just once. Please? 

Tom Riddle sat up as she entered the room.  


"Oh, hello Fluke."  


"'Lo, Riddle," she was painfully aware of her blushing cheeks and avoided his eye.  


"Tom," he corrected her, "not Riddle."  


"Er, Tom, then. Um..." she sat for a moment, unsure of what to say, and then decided that she might as well get apologising over with, "I'm most awfully sorry about-" she began, but he cut across her.  


"Never mind. We all make mistakes, don't we." It was a statement, not a question. She smiled shyly.  


"I... I suppose so."  


"How is life?" Tom asked her. Fluke felt herself warming to him and his careless manner.  


"None so good, but I suppose it could be worse," she admitted.  


"Well, mine's all right, if you ignore the obvious," he gave her a twinkling smile, "Why don't you sit down? You needn't stand on parade, you know."  


Fluke say down hesitantly on the edge of the hospital bed, fiddling with her fingers.  


"How come you are always so quiet?"  


She shrugged "Force of habit, I suppose."  


"Don't you want to talk?"  


"No one ever listens to me."  


"I'll listen," Tom told her, "so, let's talk."   


"What about?"  


"Life, the universe and everything!" They both laughed.   


"There's nothing to know about me," Fluke admitted, "My life is completely boring."  


"Really?" His eyes smiled, "I expect that's just what everyone thinks, but how many people is it true of?" He paused, "I'm going to do something worthwhile with my life."  


"What?" Fluke wondered.  


He gave her a joking grin, "I'm going to rule the world!"   


Fluke giggled, and he gave her another smile.  


"That sounds like fun," she nodded, going along with the joke.  


"Oh, I'm sure it'll be interesting," he replied slowly. Of course he was joking, but something told Fluke that he sounded just a little too serious, "There's so much wrong with the world."  


"I know," she agreed, "but one day everything'll be all right for everyone."  


"Of course. Someone agrees with me, then," Tom stared directly into Flukes eyes. Her stomach seemed to turn inside out. 

"Well... yes..."  


And then... and then... his mouth was on hers. He smelt strongly of disinfectant, but she decided to ignore that.  


This was the most glorious feeling. Fluke's stomach seemed to melt inside her. Oh, gosh...  


"_Ahem!"  
_

They sprung apart. Madam Lucas had entered the room, and was looking stern, "I was under the impression, Thomas Marvolo Riddle, that you were injured!"  


"Er--"  


"Honestly! This is not the kind of thing that goes on in hospitals!"  


Tom muttered something in Flukes ear, and she nodded, still red- faced.  


"Come on! Off with you! I don't know, children today...!" she shooed Fluke out of the cubicle.  


_Dear Diary,  
_

_1st October, 1948  
_

_Today was... well... pretty amazing. Not the kind of thing that happens in reality. Or rather it does, but not to people like me.  
_

_I almost killed Tom Riddle!  
_

_That's not the amazing bit, actually, because that would have been rather bad, all things considered. I'd probably have been expelled, and Pitty would have gotten really annoyed with me, because she likes Tom, because she thinks he's handsome . She has a good point, actually... But I digress;  
_

_The Nurse, Madam Lucas, sent me into the cubicle to apologise to him. That's fair enough, you might think, but whilst I was talking with him, he kissed me. It was just the most amazing thing! I could dance right now, only I won't, because Pitty and Adeliza are here, and they already think I'm touched. Maybe I am touched. It would explain a lot.  
_

_Tom also said that he wants to meet me tomorrow, by the lake at lunchtime. I wonder why? He really is a very strange boy. When he's joking, he seems serious, and when he's serious, it feels as though he's joking._

_Pitty was trying to flirt with him earlier. Maybe we could feed her to the giant squid. Well, it'd be something to do of an evening, and it would have a certain comedy value.  
_

_There was that awful custard for pudding again. I swear, there's things living in it! It eats spoons; This cannot be natural.  
_

_Well, so long for now!  
_

_~ Fluke~  
_

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Please review! 

Ting tang diddle eye poe! ;) 

~ Ginny :) 


	3. "Plays In The Mind"

Fluke; Part 3

By Ginny :)

What is there to say other then... here goes part 3...! Thanks to hermione potter for betaing, too. Any mistakes are, therefore, her fault... j/k. :) 

Good luck to the entire cast, crew and orchestra of 'Fiddler On The Roof', for next week! This time, I won't break any scenery, promise!!! And I *will* learn my speach for Much Ado About Nothing before the exam... OK, I know, I know, I'll get on with the story... 

Please read and review! 

Ginny :) 

____________________________________________________________________________________________ 

Of course, for Fluke time seemed to drag on as slowly as a tortoise, until that lunch break when she'd arranged to meet Tom. It didn't seem quite real, somehow. Like a dream. 

It's amazing, she thought, quite apart from anything else, something like this gives you a new self-confidence. She had hardly cared when Pitty had made snide comments about her at table, and answered back when a gang of Slytherins had jeered at her across the corridor on her way to Charms.   


Just the thought of Tom, that he liked her as a friend-and possibly more-made Fluke feel happier about herself inside. Odd, really.   


Fluke almost flew on winged feet down to the lake after History Of Magic. She had written a two line answer to her essay, 'What Were Muggle Attitudes To Witches And Wizards In The 16th Century And How Have They Changed; Discuss-- Use Set Sources And Your Own Knowledge', and the teacher, ancient Professor Binns, who looked about 90 and who was, no doubt, on his last legs anyway, hadn't been in time to stop her before she raced from the classroom.   
  
"Hello, Tom!" She greeted him, beaming. She was in a good mood.  
  
He smiled at her "Hello."  
  
They walked along the side of the lake together, chatting pleasantly. It was one of those gorgeously bright September days when the air is chill, with a sharp edge to it, but the sun warms you and your surroundings. For a change, it wasn't raining, although the grassy area around the lake somewhat resembled a bog from a recent rain storm.   


They talked together, everything feeling almost ordinary for Fluke, but she was a little surprised when Tom said, "Fluke, have you got your drawing pad with you?"  


"Yes," Fluke admitted, wondering why he'd bought it up, "It's in my bag."  


"I was wondering... can you draw things from life? Or, you know, copy things?"  


"I'd like to think so," Fluke shrugged, deciding that he was probably just interested, "I don't really know... I think they're good copies, but no one else has ever said they are or anything..."  


"Well, you never show them to people."  


"Um. Not usually," Fluke admitted, thinking of that time she'd shown Tom her drawings.  


"Can you draw something from life for me?"  


"Now?" Fluke was taken aback.   


"Why not? You're a simply great drawerer, and I just wondered..."   


Fluke blushed, feeling flattered, but wishing that she didn't turn bright pink every time he paid her a compliment.  


"I'll try," she mumbled a little coyly, casting her eye around, "What shall I draw?"  


"Whatever you want!"  


"Um?"  


He laughed at her, "Are you always this indecisive?"   


She shrugged back at him, wishing that, just once, she could come back with some sparklingly witty remark. Nothing came to mind. Nothing ever did, when Tom was around... she just... said whatever came into her head, and usually that didn't make any sense. She'd spent the last 15 minutes talking about her love of music; Fluke was tone deaf.   


He cast his eye around the vast expanse of mud, presumably looking for something for herto draw, and drawing on a blank. Everything was... muddy.   


"Draw me, then," he instructed her.  


"Oh, but I don't think--"  


"I'm sure you can. Just try it, eh?"  


"Well, I--"  


"Please, Fluke? Just a quick sketch? For me?" he pecked her on the lips. Fluke's legs and stomach turned to putty, and her cheeks felt hot. _Why did she have to spend so much time blushing?!_ She cursed herself.   


"Well, all right..." she agreed, still a little unsure. She didn't know if she could draw a human face from life. She'd never tried. All the same, she stood opposite him, pencil and paper in hand, trying to get his form onto paper quickly, but fairly accurately.   


When she'd finished, she frowned at it... something wasn't quite right...  


"Are you finished?" Tom asked her.  


"Um..." she wasn't sure what was wrong with it, but something was...  


"Let me see." He held out a hand expectantly.  


"Well, it's not very good," she admitted, handing it over to him. He looked at it, critically.  


"It's truly brilliant," he assured her, "Except..."   


"What?"  


"This line here," he motioned on the drawing with his hand, "it should be more... like this... you see?"  


As soon as Fluke rubbed out that line, and replaced it with the one Tom had suggested, the picture seemed to take on a new life. This was how it was supposed to be. It looked like Tom. Fluke grinned, pleased with herself.   


"Fantastic!" Tom told her, "Brill..." he seemed to be thinking for a moment, "... Fluke, I don't suppose you could do me a favour?"  


"What kind of favour?"  


"Just drawing something for me," he paused for a moment before continuing, "I've got this picture I'd like you to copy. I don't suppose you'd mind?"  


"Of course not!" She assured him, "What's it of?"   


He pulled something out of his pocket. Fluke, whose pockets were always full of pieces of string, snapped bootlaces, chewed pencils, grubby bits of paper, food that was so old it was practically growing legs, and a homework diary, wondered how he found it so quickly.   


"This," he handed it to her.  


Fluke stared at the picture photograph. It was beautiful... but too twisted, too imperious, too stately. It almost took your breath away.  


It showed what looked like a giant serpent, possibly 15 feet long if it had been real, in the most glorious colours. It appeared to glow silvery- green on the page. It seemed to move as she stared at it, rippling, coiling, all in one unmoving, yet undulating movement. It's eyes were bright green, and seemed to bore into you. Fangs like meat cleavers hung impressively in it's gargantuan mouth.  


"What is it?" Fluke whispered, awestruck.  
  
"A serpent..." answered Tom, "... known as the basilisk." Fluke noticed how odd his voice sounded. Serious. He'd only used a tone of voice like that when he'd been saying how terrible everything in the world was, 2 days ago in the hospital wing.   


She wasn't sure she liked that tone of voice. It sounded so cold, nothing like the Tom Riddle who joked with her, flattered her and... and kissed her.  


"Can you draw it?" Tom asked, a bite of impatience in his voice. Fluke nodded mutely in reply.  


"I'll... I'll try."  


"Thank you, Fluke. You must draw it. It's very important." That same odd sound to his voice again. It was unnerving.  


"I... I think I ought to be going," Fluke muttered, pocketing the photograph of the basilisk. She was feeling uneasy. This was a side to Tom she didn't want to know.  


"Why? The bell won't be going for ages yet," he pointed out, "Let's talk, eh?" His voice was back to normal. His carefree and charming manner returned, but Fluke still felt strange. Like someone was watching her...  


"No, I think I'll go now... I'll start drawing your picture soon!" she added, shouting over her shoulder as she hurried back towards Hogwarts.  


If she had looked back, Fluke would have seen Tom standing there, staring after her, an unpleasant smile on his pale- skinned face, a darstedly leer in his depthless eyes.  


Something was going to happen. He knew it. He was _planning _ it.  
  
_Dear Diary, 3rd October, 1948  
_

_I met Tom by the lake today, as we agreed. We chatted for simply ages, and it was lovely. Then Tom asked me to draw him, so I did. I assume that he liked my picture, because he gave me a book-photo of this huge great snake- a basilisk- to draw for him.  
_

_It's the most beautiful, and yet most ugly creature you can imagine, It's magnificent in all it's colour and glory, but something about it is wrong... it's too alluring. When you look close, you can see that it's so beautiful, and it makes you feel as though you are nothing. As though you are worthless. It seems to move on the page, although I know that that's impossible. It plays in the mind, and it scares me something dreadful.  
_

_But, I said I will draw it for him, so I will. I keep my promises.   
_

_Pitty has come to sneer at me, since Adeliza and Freya are here too, and since they can't stand me, she has to 'keep up appearances', as you might say. She's only ever nice to me when there's no one better to associate with. I might as well go and watch them wind Eulalia up. They can't stand each other, and it's all rather funny. With luck, Eulalia will set her 'little sweetie, really' -- aka The Fiend From Hell-- on them. That would be worth a watch._

_Well, so long for now, dear diary. Time to stop procrastinating... Homework beckons!  
_

_~ Fluke ~_

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Please read & review! I only got 2 reviews for my last part... sniffle... 

Cheers! 

Oh... and hi to Jess and Kate, should they read this! I'm WORKING on part 14 of Sunshine If Eternal, I promise! Don't flood my inbox, cuz I'll do it back :¬P! 

Ginny :) 


	4. 

Fluke; Part 4

By Ginny :)

In case you were wondering, I've written the first part of my next 'Lily & James' series, called '_Lily and James; Mirror'd Illusions'_ .I'll be posting it as soon as this series has finished. Bunny Chan and I are still working on _Even Angels Make Mistakes_ [for those of you who don't know, we co- wrote it under the name 'Bunny Chan and Ginny :)', and it's very strange, about Neville's poor Gardien Angel... although maybe you should pity Neville more, all things considered. Hmmm... ], but it's kinda hard to arrange times to talk about plot, etc, since she lives in Malaysia, and I live in London. However, part 3 _is_ in production! Promise! Likewize, part 14 of Sunshine If Eternal is being written. 

_**ANYWAY**_, JKRowling owns Tom Riddle and Myrtle. 

Ginny :) 

____________________________________________________________________________________________ 

Fluke worked away day after day, at school work, homework, art work, and of course, her picture for Tom, whenever she could.   
It was turning out to be quite a picture. Fluke had grown to hate it in one way, but had also to half fall in love with it. It was different from anything else she'd ever drawn ... it was a powerful image, nothing like the usual elegant unicorns, comely fairies and delightful sprites she usually sketched. This had a... a... something extra. It was more powerful, more vivid, more... more enchanting, in that impossible manner that it used to fix itself into your mind, and wove it's way into your thoughts, putting all kinds of strange, twisted ideas into it. 

Fluke wondered why Tom wanted this picture. The basilisk was so obviously full of intended evil. She couldn't imagine why anyone would want to see it... but once you had seen it, you became captivated, so that you wanted to see it again. It was confusing. There must be something behind Tom's wanting it that he did not want to admit. 

Fluke continued to see Tom daily, each day they chatted, kissed, smiled and he acted as he had done. None of the cold urgentness showed itself, and Fluke began to wonder if it was all in her imagination. 

She didn't like to ask what the picture was for, because every time it was broached, he would change the subject almost instantly. Fluke was curious, of course, but decided that it was better for all concerned if she just got on with it. 

Of course, word soon got around the school of Fluke and Tom's romance. People did wonder about it... Tom was clever, handsome, popular and generally charming, as well as being able to pick any girl he chose to date out of pretty much the entire school ... and as for Fluke ... well, what did a boy like him see in a plain, talentless, silence-stricken girl like her? 

Pitty, for one, was terribly jealous. 

"What's he see in you?" she demanded, cornering Fluke one day in the Hufflepuff common room, Pitty's friends Freya Wykevski and Adeliza Blaize, standing nearby, hands on hips, giving Fluke envious stares. 

"I don't know," said Fluke, in perfect truth. 

"He's either blind, or barmy." Freya announced, matter-of- factly. 

"Or both," nodded Adeliza, tossing her fair head. 

"Or maybe," Pitty glared at Fluke maliciously, "you've been mixing up a love potion in your spare time?" 

Freya looked scornful, "Don't make me laugh! A love potion! Her!" 

"Well, it's possible," Adeliza looked at Fluke sideways. 

All 3 exchanged glances. All thinking the same thoughts. 

"Have you been making love potions, Fluke?" 

"No." 

"Whatever!" 

There was a pause, during which Fluke rather wished that she was somewhere else, or, even better, that Pitty, Adeliza and Freya were somewhere else, preferably a long way off, and that she, Fluke, was still in the common room. That would be in an ideal world, though. 

Pitty suddenly put on a jovial air, which Fluke had long ago learned to mistrust. 

"I say, Fluke, you wouldn't make us some of this potion, would you?" 

"I never made any. You know what my potions are like, I'd just--" 

"C'mon, Fluke, you can tell us..." 

"But I honestly didn't make--" 

"Fine. If you don't want to help your best friend--" 

"No, I don't!" Fluke snapped. She was surprised at herself, "I don't want to help you, and what's more, it's not even true!" 

She pushed past Pitty, Adeliza and Freya, who looked amazed at Fluke's retaliation. She stalked off, glaring all the way. 

"Sheesh! Touchy!" Pronounced Adeliza. 

Now stricken with a near-terminal bad mood, Fluke made her way through the castle. Her annoyance was not decreased by being stopped by a Gryffindor 3rd year, Sauda Trelawney, who was frankly _mental _, and being informed that Tom Riddle was evil, that you could see it in his eyes, that the horror was drawing ever closer, and that she, Fluke, was going to die soon. Oh, and had she seen Trelawney's spare quill anywhere? Doom and woe, don'cha know. 

Fluke informed Trelawney that she hadn't, that she was fine, Tom was fine, and that if she saw any death omens, she'd be sure to let her know as soon as possible. 

No one ever listened to Sauda Trelawney. It was common knowledge that she was completely insane, and most likely, not worth listening to. Maybe she was jealous, too? Fluke half-grinned to herself. No one had ever envied her before; not once in her life. Well, it could only be a turn up for the books, really. 

"Fluke!" 

"What now?" Fluke spun round, a scowl on her face, expecting Trelawney or one of the Hufflepuffs. But it wasn't; it was Tom. 

She blushed deep red. 

"I'm sorry, did I do something?" He looked at her, as if worried. Her face softened. 

"No ... nothing. I mean, I thought Trelawney or ... well. I'm sorry." She smiled at him a little hopefully. He smiled back at her. Butterflies reentered her stomach. She wished that wouldn't happen. 

"Well, I forgive you." He gave her a joking wink, "For a moment there, I thought I'd done something wrong." 

"Oh, no, not at all." She reassured him. 

"I'm glad." 

He gave her one of those kisses that always seemed to turn her insides into   
treacle. 

"So, has that Sauda Trelawney been bothering you?" 

"Yes, with all her death threats and predictions of doom." 

"That can be almost incredibly annoying." 

"I know," Fluke gave a slight laugh, "she's convinced that you're evil." 

"I noticed. Every time she sees me in the corridor, she goes all ... funny," he imitated Trelawney's voice, "'Keep away, boy! I see evil in your soul! Keep away!' She's utterly barmey." 

Fluke nodded, agreeing completely. 

"Come to that," Tom said suddenly, "have you finished my picture yet? I need it-- soon." 

"Yes, actually." 

"Oh, good!" he smiled at her, and it was not a nice smile, "have you got it on you?" 

"Yes. It's in my bag." That was perfectly true, and Fluke pulled it from it's usual confines, into daylight. 

"Thank you," he took it from her, the fixed smile still on his face, as though it was cut out of stone, he leant forwards to kiss her. Their lips met... but Fluke found herself recoiling as though repulsed by something. 

"What's wrong?" he looked at her, the twisted grin gone from his face, now all concern. 

"I... nothing. Nothing." She looked away, embarrassed. But still had the fixed feeling that something was wrong... a feeling of intense unease... 

"Fluke? Are you all right? Listen, I-" 

She met his eye. Her stomach lurched. She didn't know why, but she felt something almost like a sudden thrill of terror. She turned on her heel, and... ran for it. 

"Fluke?" He called after her, "Fluke, come back!" 

He set off after her. Fluke ran faster, almost losing control of her mind and her body. She couldn't think. Everything was a blur. She just knew that she had to get away. Tom had the picture, she had to get away... 

Fluke was not a good runner. Tom was. He caught up with her within a moment, and grabbed her arm. 

"Fluke! Listen!" 

She gaped at him, mouth open like a gold fish's, breathing hard, feeling panic drumming in every limb. The expression on Tom's face was ... unreadable. It scared her. She tried to get her hand out of his grip, but it was too tight, like a vice. 

"Get off!" She was surprised at herself for the 2nd time that day. She thumped the hand, but it's grip remained fast. 

"Fluke, listen to me, I need your help again, and I'm sorry--" 

She was barely listening. She couldn't explain it, but there was something in his eyes, his face, that told her something was going to happen. He had planned it, and he would carry it out ... whatever 'it' was. 

"Get off me! Get off!" Terror ran through every vein, and she didn't even know why-- 

He didn't say anything after that. He just let her struggle until all the energy drained out of her, and she collapsed, sobbing in a heap, held up by her wrist. Then he hoisted her to her feet, and held her in his arms. 

Fluke was no even more confused then she had been before. His arms felt comforting around her, but...but she could hardly ignore what all her other senses had been screaming out not a moment before. Her breath seemed to catch in her throat with ever gasp she made. 

"Shhh," Tom's voice was comforting, "calm down." 

She gave a choking gasp, breathing too hard to answer him, tears of panic still in her eyes. Now she wondered why she had felt so scared a moment ago. She must be going mad. This boy was strange, yes, but he was also sweet, and he was the only person who had ever tried to be her friend, ever. More then a friend... 

"Are you all right now, Fluke?" 

She nodded mutely in reply. 

"What's wrong? You can tell me." 

"I thought... I mean... I... nothing." 

"Really? Nothing?" his voice was disbelieving, but Fluke didn't answer him. He sighed. 

"I can see that you aren't going to tell me..." he paused, "Fluke, will you come with me for a moment, please?" 

"Er... all right." She answered, with some misgiving, but Tom's tone and touch had comforted her enough to trust him once again. 

"Oh, good. I'm sorry if I did anything to scare you." He apologised. 

"Oh ... that's all right..." She frowned a little to herself. He had her by the hand now, his grip no longer so tight, but comforting. They walked together along the corridors, ignored by the world in general. 

Fluke was more then a little surprised, when he lead her into girl's toilets, but she continued to follow him anyhow. 

Inside one of the cubicles, sat a girl, sobbing. Fluke recognised her vaguely, as a Hufflepuff girl from the year below, Myrtle Sullivan by name. 

Myrtle looked up as they entered. 

"_Ooh_! You're not allowed in here," she said, eyeing Tom with interest. Tom gave her a Look, before ignoring her,"You'll get into _trouble_," Mytle continued to Tom, before turning her gaze on Fluke, "And what do you want?" She stared at Fluke for a long moment, and when she didn't answer, Myrtle burst into tears, "You've come to tease me about my glasses, haven't you?" 

"No," said Fluke, "I haven't, I promise, I--" 

"What, then? No -- let me guess, it's my, my _spots_, isn't it?" 

"No. Myrtle, look--" 

"Come on," interrupted Tom, giving Myrtle a look of intense dislike, "Come over here, Fluke." 

She obeyed. Tom was standing next to the sink, examining one of the taps with the keenest scrutiny. On the top of one, Fluke noticed a tiny snake, etched into it. A mini and less spectacular version of the Basilisk. Then Tom spoke...but not in English. Nor any other language that Fluke knew -- not that she knew many. It was strange... a kind of hissing noise. Like ... like a snake. 

Fluke didn't know what he said, but instantly, the tap glowed a brilliant white light, and began to spin. Fluke gasped in amazement, as the sink, in fact, sank, leaving a large pipe-like tunnel exposed, easily large enough for a man to fit into. Fluke backed away. 

"Tom, I don't think--" 

But he had her by the arm again, and pulled her after him, as they entered the tunnel. 

For some reson, a sentence entered Fluke's dazed mind... 

_The Chamber has been opened..._

____________________________________________________________________________________________ 

There's probably only one -- _possibly_ two-- more parts left to it after this, I'm afraid. And I'm sorry that I took ages to write this part, I've been really busy with shows and auditions and such- like. :) My thanks to hermione potter, my much- neglected beta reader for beta-ing this [because I know she'll leave a hinting review if I don't send it to her, tee hee]! 

Please can you read & review? Cheers! 


	5. The Game Of Life

Fluke; Part 5

By Ginny :)

Please r/r! Con crit especially, so as I can make the next thing I write ['lily & James; mirror'd illusions'] even better! Oh, and I can't be bothered to go and root out my books, so I'm making up my old spells for this. I apologise in advance for my translations of Tom's spell into Welsh. I had it translated over the net, after failing to make _any_ sense of Latin-- Enough said. 

Ginny :) 

____________________________________________________________________________________________ 

_ ... The Chamber has been opened..._

Fluke didn't understand it, and didn't want to, and anyway, she didn't have the time to wonder at it. Tom gripped her by the arm, and lead her into the mouth of the pipe. Fluke heard Myrtle gasp behind them. 

Suddenly, the floor seemed to give way underneath them, and they were falling, slithering, sliding down a the long pipe. Fluke felt a scream rise shrilly in her throat. Tom still had a grip on her arm as they landed in a heap at the bottom. Fluke sat there, bewildered and frightened, eyes tight shut, shaking a little, gasping for breath. She wondered, frightened, what was happening, why they were there, what Tom was up to... 

He pulled her to her feet. 

"_Lumos_!" He raised his wand, lighted it, and hoisted her ungently to her feet. 

"Tom!" 

"What?" 

"W... where are we?" 

He gave her one of those nasty smiles. Fluke's insides writhed like snakes and lizards. 

"You'll see. Come on. This way." Fluke didn't have a choice, as he pulled her along behind him into a narrow passageway. It was dark. The air tasted dry, like sand. There was not a breath of wind. It was too dark to see anything much, except for those things directly in the light of Tom's illuminated wand. She didn't speak to him. Her mind seemed to be numb. She didn't understand what was going on... were they in the secret chamber for good... or for evil? Fluke wished she knew. 

Then the passageway ended, and a huge chamber was opened in front of them. It was like a giant cave, carved out of rock, only with thousands of designs-- mostly of snakes and dragons-- etched into the walls. A dagger of fear dug deep into the back of Fluke's neck and drew it's self down her spine as she saw them. 

Tom turned to her. 

"Here we are, then, Fluke." 

"Oh..." she stared around. The slit- like eyes of snakes and dragons stared down at her. 

"Now, I need your help again." He took the drawing out of his pocket. Fluke watched, wondering what was going to happen. Her stomach felt full of lead weights. 

"Fluke, are you listening?" 

"Um... yes." She blinked at him, unsurely. 

"Good. Take the picture." She did as he instructed, feeling unable to obey any other will, but for his, "Now... shut your eyes," like a robot, Fluke did so, "Imagine that the snake is alive..." 

The vision seemed to fill her mind. A snake. Basilisk. Twisting and writhing and snaking and sliding and.... Fluke suddenly seemed to snap out of the depths of her mind. She screamed. 

"Keep imagining it!" Tom yelled, his voice forceful, "You have to!" 

... flowing and glowing and 

"Now say '_Neidr! ddyfynna'ch at d'n fyw'_," [translation; Snake! I summon you to come alive] Fluke repeated him blindly, no other option being in her mind. It was as though... her mind was no longer her own, taken over by this enchantingly evil beast. 

"_Ag pawb'r allu ca I mewn'm gwythi_." [With all the power I have in my veins.] Again, Fluke repeated, and Tom continued, smiling his sickly smile, "_Ddyfynna'ch, at gwasanaetha'i fel a'n ufuddblentyn."_ [I summon you to serve him as if a dutiful child] The picture was beginning to shine as Fluke repeated. Tom's voice continued in it's drone, as he read the final line, "_Fi, a creedig'ch ddyfynna'ch at anadla!_" [I, who created you, summon you to breathe!] 

"_Fi, a creedig'ch ddyfynna'ch at anadla!"_ Fluke repeated, her voice distant. Her mind was somewhere else, somewhere, too far away to hear it's thoughts. Tom's words were hers. 

But as she pronounced the final syllable, Fluke's previously lost mind seemed to rush back into her head. She realised with a jolt where she was, what she had done, that something _wrong _ was about to happen... 

Fluke felt a scream rise shrilly in her throat, as she saw the picture she had drawn with such precision disintegrate into dust. Her eyes were forced shut against the searing white light that flashed then. It penetrated through her eyelids. She felt a rush of warm air over her thin face. 

And then... silence... 

And _then..._ laughter, and the dry, hard sound of scales scarping over sandy flooring. She opened her eyes. Rainbow lights flew around her from where she had slammed them shut so hard and hastily. And... in front of her... 

The basilisk. 

She had created it. It had come from her mind, her imagination, using the hidden evils that everyone has inside them. Somehow, she knew it. Fluke drew back with a shuddering heave and gasp. 

"Thankyou, Fluke," Tom spoke now. She stared at him. Her voice seemed stuck in her throat. She couldn't move. The basilisk lay on the floor, it's eyes upon her, staring though to the bone, or so it seemed to Fluke. Her brown eyes flicked from one face to the other; the serpent and the boy. 

"That is quite some magic you have inside you." He smiled again at her, a cruel mirth in his eyes. 

"Wha-? I didn't... I couldn't have..." 

"You created it," he affirmed, "It's made from the evil you have alive inside you; that everyone has inside them. Not that this," he motioned to the serpent, "is evil. It isn't. It's just a snake. It just shows how much evil you have inside _you._" 

"But--" Fluke backed away. She wasn't evil-- she got upset when she accidentally trod on a snail the other day, it didn't make _sense_... 

"It's true," he shrugged, "It's just that almost nobody admits to themselves what power there is, lying in wait, in their souls. You were no acceptation. You could draw, you used the power inside you..." his thin lips became still thinner, "You were different, because you could _harness_ that power." 

Fluke opened her already gaping mouth to interrupt again, but he cut across her. 

"Still, it's of no or little matter, you know. It all amounts to the same thing in the end." Fluke noticed that his hand had gone to his pocket. 

_His wand!_ Her mind snapped at her,_ his wand's in his pocket! Do something! Get your wand out, idiot!_

Fluke's fingers met the hard surface of the wand in her pocket, and she drew it out at the same moment Tom did. She moved first though. 

"_Stupefy!_" The jet of light was send spinning through the air towards it's target, and... missed. Fluke cursed. 

"Clever move, Fluke." Tom grinned at her. She glared back, "Not clever enough though... _stupify!_" She tried to dodge, but the curse hit her straight on. Fluke froze, rigid, unable to move, hot tears of anger and hate and frustration came from her eyes. 

Tom paused again for a moment, as if thoughtful, not at all sorry for his actions. Then continued, only half to Fluke, "You know, I could just kill you with a single curse. But you know what?" Fluke didn't reply; she couldn't, "Just to kill you, straight off like that... that wouldn't be winning. Now you've challenged me, Fluke. You sent that curse at me. Now," and he paused, as if savouring the words, "I have to win." 

Fluke's heart was in her mouth, beating so loud she thought that surely Tom would be able to hear it. She couldn't hide her fear. It seemed to create an invisible, yet suffocating cloud around her, even in her stupefied state. 

"And you know something else?" No reply, of course. "No? Then I'll tell you. Killing you with a curse... that wouldn't be _winning_. You wouldn't _know_ that you've lost. You'd just be... dead. But now I have this Basilisk on my side," the great snake stirred upon hearing it's name, and smiled as only snakes can, before setting it's head back down again. Fluke made sure to avoid it's eye, as Tom continued, "I can use it to make sure you _know_ you've lost. Even if you had not challenged me, you would die, Fluke. Surely you realise that?" 

She couldn't answer, even if she had wanted to. She was shaking with fury, the only movement she could manage. 

He grinned a grin very much like the basilisk's, "But, I have a sense of fair play, you know..." and with a wave of his wand, he unstupefied her. She rubbed her lumbs to get the life back into them, and didn't dare send another curse at him, "... so saying, I will let you fight my basilisk. You have your wand, he has his teeth and his eyes. Basilisk! She challenges your strength! Up!" 

And the basilisk uncoiled it's self from the ground. Fluke avoided it's eyeline like the plague. She didn't know what to do-- every nerve in her body was screaming at her to run, but common sense told her that if she tried that, she'd be an easy mouthful. She _had_ to fight it. 

"_Stupefy!"_ it was the first spell that came into her head. The curse hit the great serpent, but bounced back off it's hard scales. Fluke had to jump aside to avoid getting hit by the rebound. 

The basilisk, seeming enraged by this, lunged at her. Fluke was forced to keep dodging and darting and veering to keep out of the way of it's huge poisonous fangs. To add extra terror, she had to remember not to look the beast in the eye if she valued her life. She skirted it's every move, screaming curses of every kind at it. All bounced off it's green scales. Tom's sick laughter rang in her ears. She hated him... she _hated_ him... 

Fluke's limbs were beginning to ache... she was tired. She couldn't keep this up. She just_ couldn't_... but she had to... she _had_ to... 

She fumbled and almost fell with tiredness. 

And then the basilisk struck. Fluke felt the fang sink through the skin, fat and muscle, into the very marrow of her bone. Fluke screamed, loud, shrill and in such pain. 

The poison seemed to run into her blood like red hot melted iron. Fluke sank to the ground, Tom's laughter ringing in her ears. 

Everything became fuzzy. And then she was floating... floating... floating through space. She was hardly going to be missed to Hogwarts, and this she knew, as she looked down at the form of her body in it's puddle of ruby red blood, Tom laughing, the basilisk snaking it's way back to him to be patted on the head. 

What was there to stay for? No one. 

Fluke pushed on the air and moved forwards. It was like swimming, only, she could breathe... kind of. Well, all right, she couldn't... but then again... 

She decided not to let it trouble her, and swam off, upwards, towards the light that had appeared. Upwards, to join her family. 

And Tom laughed. Fluke had lost at something else; the game of life. Purpose served. This was the bullet in the game of Russian Roulettes. 

For Fluke it was the end, but for someone else... it was the beginning... and after that... another ending which was really a continuation... which was really... a beginning... 

_... the Chamber had been opened..._

____________________________________________________________________________________________ 

Well, that's the end! No, I can't continue it. The next part isn't my story. It's not for me to write. You can tell I've been reading philosophical books, can't you? My lily and James series should be much happier then this, and, hopefully have a more satisfying... end? ;) 

By the way, I have a new website, http://www.geocities.com/foolish_faye/me.html?989654552580 [copy & paste the address into the URL boxy thingy], with my pictures of the characters in my fics... including 'Fluke', 'To Sleep No More', and 'Even Angels Make Mistakes!', possibly with more to come. 

Now, please could you review? Con crit, if possible! Tell me what you liked, didn't like, if it made you think, cry, turn into a manic depressive, laugh like a psycho... [OK, so it's unlikely, but you never know] ... what can I improve? Characterisation? Grammar? Plot? Please let me know! 

Cheers! 

Ginny :) 


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